A Belated Valentine's in Colorado
by fems
Summary: After a hectic week on base Sam hasn't had time to celebrate Valentine's Day with her husband yet, so she decides to make it up to him on the weekend.


**Title: **A Belated Valentine's in Colorado  
**Sequel to**: Christmas with the Family at Home  
**Category:** Fluff, Romance, Family, AU

**Season:** post SGU  
**Spoilers**: none  
**Pairing:** S/J  
**Summary: **After a hectic week on base Sam hasn't had time to celebrate Valentine's Day with her husband yet, so she decides to make it up to him on the weekend.

**Rating:** T  
**Warnings:** none

**Disclaimer:** see profile

**A/N: **This is a sequel to _Christmas with the Family at Home _from the GW Shippy Holiday Series but each story can stand alone. I don't have a beta, so any mistakes are my own. I always appreciate feedback and/or constructive criticism or just a comment to let me know why you (don't) like it.

* * *

**February 16, 2013  
****Carter-O'Neill Residence  
Colorado Springs, CO**

It was dark by the time Sam parked her Volvo in front of the house and when she got out of the car she realized the temperature had dropped a few more degrees since she had left the mountain. A cold gust of wind made her shiver and, after locking the car and grabbing her things, she quickly ran up the path to the front door. It had been a long week at the SGC and she had been looking forward to spending some time at home all day!

Smiling to herself she unlocked the front door and quietly slipped inside. After putting away her things she headed towards the living room, not surprised to hear a soft murmur of voices coming from its direction; Jack and the girls were home. Normally, Grace would already be getting ready for bed right about now but their daughter was allowed to stay up a bit longer on the weekend. Plus, Jack had said something about Sam getting home late all week already, so he probably wouldn't mind Grace's bedtime being a bit later if it meant they could all spent some time together as a family.

She rounded the corner and the sight that greeted her upon entering the living room warmed her heart; a blanket was laid out in front of the fireplace and on it Jack was stretched out on his stomach, a stuffed toy in one hand and a sock puppet on his other and he was animatedly talking and gesturing, with Grace at his side and playing with a Barbie and Sam's old Major Matt Mason doll, all the while the twins were watching them curiously. Sophie was alternating her gaze between them and the rattle she was shaking in her tiny hand and Tess was sucking on her fingers but gazing intently at Jack's show from her propped up position in front of him.

Jack must have heard or sensed her presence because he suddenly looked over his shoulder and grinned at her. "Hey, you're home."

Sam leaned against the doorpost and simply took a moment to enjoy watching her family. "Yes, finally. Sorry I'm late, have you guys eaten yet?"

"Nope, we were waiting for you, Mommy," Grace piped up with a big smile. "Daddy said I could stay up and we could order pizza!"

Jack was quick to correct their daughter, though. "I said 'maybe', depending on when Mommy got home and what she wanted to do for dinner."

Entering the room Sam walked over to her husband and slid her fingers into his silver hair. "I actually already made plans for us," she told him.

"Really?" His eyebrows shot up in surprise and he looked up at her, still smirking as she ruffled his hair. The surprise slowly made way for suspicion and his brown eyes narrowed at her. "Is that why you called this afternoon and made me promise not to start on dinner until you got here?"

She simply smiled in response and leaned down to kiss him. "Hi," she murmured against his lips after they broke apart.

"Hi yourself."

"I want a kiss too, Mommy," Grace said, tapping her cheek with a finger.

Chuckling, Sam stepped over Jack's large frame to reach their daughter and sat down in between them. "Come here, hon." She wrapped her arms around her daughter and hugged her tightly before pressing a kiss on her cheek. "I've missed you." After she released her eldest the dolls on the blanket and Jack's hands caught her eye. "What have you two been up to?"

"We were just entertaining Sophie and Tess with a puppet and doll show," Jack replied as he slid his arm around her waist. "And they loved it, didn't you?"

Both babies giggled as he used the sock puppet to tickle their tummies but their excitement also made Sophie drop her rattle while Tess lost her balance as she kicked her feet up and slid sideways against the pillows. Sam was quick to grab her and pulled her youngest into her lap. "And I've missed you too, Tess," she said, nuzzling her baby's ginger hair. She took the bib her husband wordlessly handed her and used it to wipe the drool off the girl's chin and fingers, as Tess happily babbled and cooed in response. "Have you bathed them already?"

Jack shook his head after sitting up and lifted Sophie into his arms. "I took a shower with Tess this afternoon to clean her up before putting her to bed, because she had decided to try out something new."

"She stole peach from my fruit salad," Grace explained, rolling her eyes.

"We were sitting here and Gracie was reading a book while eating her fruit and I guess Tess was just fascinated with her reaching into her bowl every now and then, so she did the same thing and naturally put it in her mouth to investigate," he elaborated, smirking. "Unfortunately she wasn't wearing a bib and while she seemed to like the taste, the juice kinda went down her chin and onto her clothes."

"Daddy filmed it on his phone!"

He shrugged as he shifted their middle child on his lap. "Caught most of it in time."

Sam chuckled at the image and was glad he'd managed to film it since she was already missing out on so many moments with her job as base commander at the SGC because of the long hours she made. Fortunately, Jack seemed to have embraced the camera function on his cell phone, which meant she got to witness more 'firsts' and every-day moments with the twins than she had when Grace had been their age because of her previous assignments at the SGC, Atlantis and _Hammond_ while Jack stayed in DC with their daughter. "I'm looking forward to watching it."

"Daddy told me to give Sophie some fruit too but she spat it out," Grace said.

Jack smiled and looked down at the little girl in his arms. "Well, more like grimaced and then opened her mouth and let it fall out, didn't you?"

Sophie cooed at him and reached her chubby hands out to Sam as she babbled something unintelligible.

"I had my phone ready and made sure to put a bib on her before Gracie handed her the fruit. Sophie might not like peaches yet but at least we have a cute video of it for the family album."

"Oh, poor baby." Sam easily caught both of Sophie's hands with one of her own and brought them up to press a kiss on the girl's chubby little fists.

Jack simply shrugged as he caressed the girl's wisps of blond hair. "Nah, she probably already forgot about it."

"They've been good all day, Mommy."

"I think she wants to say hi to you now, though. Here, let me take Tess from you."

Sam lifted her daughter and held her up for her husband, while he put the girl's twin on her lap and then took Tess from her. "Hi Sophie." The baby smiled and babbled at her before reaching out to grab at the space wings on her dress blues as the badge caught the light. "You're getting so big," Sam murmured as she pressed a kiss on the baby's head. She had missed her girls these past few days, only seeing them briefly at breakfast and after getting home late from work when all three of them were usually already asleep and now she felt a bit bad about her plans for tonight… "Have you fed them already?"

"Nope, we were waiting for you for dinner," Jack replied. "Their bottles are ready to be warmed up, though. After yesterday's fiasco with the cups I figured bottles were safest and they haven't really shown much interest in solids yet either."

Grace got up off the floor and made her way over to Jack, who was sitting cross-legged and had Tess on his right thigh, and easily slid down on her father's lap without disturbing the baby. "Except for my fruit and bread."

Jack wrapped his free arm around her and pulled her against his chest. "That's because you're their big sister."

"You betcha!" Their eldest beamed at them, showing off the two permanent front teeth that had filled the gap left behind by her primary teeth falling out a few months ago. "What's for dinner, Mommy? Can we have pizza?!"

"Yes, tell us about those plans you made, Carter."

Sam smiled when Jack gently nudged her and shifted Sophie on her lap. "Well, I thought the girls could stay over at Cassie's and we could spend the evening together, to make up for Valentine's Day since I was on base all day and didn't come home until late in the evening."

"Oooh, Cassie! Yes, I wanna stay with Cassie, Daddy! Please?"

"Let me guess; she'll let you have pizza for dinner, right munchkin?" Jack smirked when Grace shyly ducked her head and giggled. "No giggling!"

That only made Grace giggle louder until her small shoulders were shaking with laughter and Sophie joined in by cooing and babbling, while Tess started giggling along with her sister when Jack tickled her. Their laughter was infectious and soon Sam was giggling and tickling Sophie too until both babies and Grace got short of breath and they all calmed down.

Jack was still smiling as he sought Sam's gaze. "Are you sure letting them stay with Cass is what you want?"

"Yes, I already talked it over with her and she'll be here any minute now to pick up the girls."

Grace perked up at that and without preamble wormed her way out of her father's grasp and ran over to the window that looked onto the street. "I don't see any cars yet."

Sam waited until her eldest turned back to them with a questioning gaze. "Why don't you go upstairs and get an overnight bag together, hon."

"You know the drill, Gracie; your toothbrush and toothpaste from the bathroom, pajamas and clean underwear from your bedroom and your hairbrush," Jack summed up. It wasn't that the girls stayed over at Cassie's often but Grace had plenty of experience packing her bag for when they went to the cabin or stayed over in Colorado Springs when they'd still been living in DC. "What about clothes, Sam?"

"I figured we could take the girls to the zoo tomorrow, since it's my day off. We can pick them up from Cassandra's house and make a day out of it."

"The zoo!" Grace squealed with joy and ran over to the stairs. "I'll be right back, Mommy!"

Jack gave Tess a big kiss before placing her back against the pillows he'd laid out earlier that day and got up. "Sounds like a plan. Do you want me to feed the twins and get their things together while you change?"

It had barely registered with Sam that she was still wearing her dress blues until he pointed it out. "No, that's okay. I've hardly spent time with them all week; I'm surprised they still know who I am," she said dryly. "If you could get their things together for Cassie I'll take care of the girls and give them their bottles. That way you can also help Grace pick out an outfit for tomorrow and maybe pack a book too, because I'm not sure Cassie knows any good bedtime stories she hasn't heard yet."

"Deal," he said, leaning down to give her a kiss and caressing Sophie's cheek before heading towards the stairs.

Sam watched him go until the baby in her lap drew her attention by grasping for her face and hair. "I'm just going to put you down to take off my jacket, hon."

"Ah-goo! Baba yaya," she babbled contently.

Standing, Sam slipped off her jacket and placed it on the sofa all the while keeping an eye on the twins on the floor. She didn't want to risk either of them getting scratched by her badges or any other sharp things on her uniform or get their hair or clothes tangled in them. It wasn't that long ago that poor Tess had gotten a scratch on her cheek when Sam had enthusiastically lifted her after getting home and she really didn't want a repeat of those events – or the crying.

Before she retook her place on the blanket she took out the last few pins that were supposed to hold her braid up but now that her hair was getting longer and heavier, the pins didn't manage to do the job properly anymore. At least not for the entire time she was on base and she usually ended up with her braid hanging over her shoulder and while technically that wasn't below the underside of her shirt collar, it wasn't entirely regulations either. Not that she really expected anyone to call her on it now that she was "the Man", but she was supposed to lead by example. Perhaps it was time for a haircut or maybe she should try spending a bit more time on her hair in the morning before leaving work. The latter would, however, leave her less time in bed with Jack or the girls at breakfast…

After dropping the pins on the coffee table Sam quickly went into the kitchen to warm the bottles of expressed milk, something which had become routine for her since going back to work. Whenever she was home in time for dinner she would give the twins their bottles, too tired and stressed out after a whole day on base to relax enough right away to express enough milk herself; in the beginning she had tried but she just ended up more stressed and frustrated, which would make the babies feel frustrated – and hungry – too and they'd end up crying.

It wouldn't matter for much longer, though, because the girls were getting old enough to slowly switch to solid foods and Sam for one wouldn't miss the hassle of expressing enough milk for both babies to last through the day. At least they had been sleeping through the night for a few months now, which meant no more midnight feedings. Granted, Jack had made it clear from the beginning that he would look after them during the night too since she had a busy job to get back to, but that still required breastfeeding in the beginning and later on expressed milk so he could give them a bottle.

Sighing, Sam went back to the living room after testing the temperature of the milk, bottles in hand. The sight of her two youngest playing – Tess with a rattle and Sophie rolling on the floor – brought a smile to her face and suddenly she forgot all about the long week she'd had or how tired she really was. "It's just you and me, babies," she said, cautiously sitting down on the floor. "Who's hungry?"

* * *

Jack was whistling a ditty as he packed the last few things – clean clothes for tomorrow's trip to the zoo – for the twins in a small overnight bag, while he was trying to figure out what Sam had planned for them tonight. He hadn't really expected her to come up with something for Valentine's Day and she hadn't, at least not on the day itself. Considering how they had spent most of the Valentines throughout their marriage he hadn't been surprised or disappointed.

Well, he hadn't been disappointed with _her_. He usually tried to do something romantic on the day and with her hectic schedule this month – budget meetings with the Appropriations Committee – there simply hadn't been any time. All he had managed was bringing her a cup of coffee in bed and a quick goodbye kiss in between waking up, getting the kids ready and Sam leaving for work. The flowers and chocolates he'd bought for her had still been waiting for her when she finally came home close to midnight but by then Jack had fallen asleep on the sofa. Sam had told him she didn't mind the lack of wooing and romance after waking him up and dragging him to bed with her but Jack _had_ been disappointed; at the very least he'd hoped to make something special for dinner since they couldn't really go out to a restaurant because of the twins and it being a school night for Gracie.

They really needed to start looking for a babysitter, he reminded himself. He loved being a stay-at-home dad but with Sam's work hours there was little time they could spend together and it would be nice if they could leave the kids in someone else's capable and trustworthy hands for a night or two. It was just difficult to find someone who would fit his demands _and_ wouldn't set off any alarm bells during the prerequisite background check due to Sam's position and his past involvement with the Program. It had been much easier when it had just been Gracie and they had been living in DC but now they had two babies as well and didn't have a Pentagon daycare center at their disposal. So far they had relied on some friends but Jack didn't want to bother them with it too much since they all had their own lives, most of them being quite the workaholics with little time off and even fewer of it spent on Earth, let alone Colorado Springs.

He smiled to himself; leave it to Carter to rope Cassie into babysitting tonight and surprise him with an evening together. Once the twins' things were all packed up he moved back to the master bedroom and took a quick shower. Seeing as how Sam had gone through the trouble of planning something romantic he felt cleaning up and wearing something nice was the least he could do. Less than ten minutes later he was good to go, clean-shaven and dressed in black slacks with a black sweater. After retrieving the two small overnight bags, a pop-up travel cot and the diaper bag for the girls Jack made his way to the staircase. He wasn't surprised to hear Gracie, Sam and Cassandra talking as he descended the steps but the smell of food did surprise him – where had that come from?

"Hey Cassie, I didn't hear you arrive," he said, moving to greet the young alien woman who was like another daughter to him. "How are you?"

"Jack!" Cassandra hugged him tightly. "I'm fine. Looking forward to watching the girls."

Smirking, he released her. "What did you do to get saddled with the kids? Too late submitting reports, not making a deadline with one of your projects, or…?"

"I volunteered," she said, smiling. "I thought you and Sam deserved a nice evening together after she'd worked all day on Valentine's Day. Kyle and I went out to dinner last night but he had to go back to work, so I have the rest of the weekend off."

Gracie wormed her way between them and grabbed his hand. "Cassie said I can have pizza and stay up late, Daddy!"

"Sam said it was all right."

After exchanging a quick glance with his wife, Jack eyed the apologetic alien and sighed. "Fine, but only late for Gracie, not your kinda late, okay?"

"You betcha."

"Yay!"

He rolled his eyes in mock exasperation and waited until Cass and Gracie had both calmed down. "Want me to toss everything in the car? Might be easier to take the SUV because of the car seats and it might start snowing too tomorrow."

Sam wordlessly reached for the baby bag and slipped in a couple of bottles of expressed milk, which he'd completely forgotten to pack. "I thought the same thing; Cassie can take the SUV home and then we'll drive over to her house in her car tomorrow and make the switch before we go to the zoo. That's why I didn't park behind the SUV on the driveway."

"Okay, deal. I just need to get my purse from my car before we leave then."

Jack put on his coat and shoes, and took her car keys and his own and went out to load the bags and cot into the SUV and retrieve Cassie's purse. Once back inside the house he suppressed a shiver as he hung up his coat, appreciating the warmth from the fire he'd started earlier that day. He chuckled when he saw Gracie on the sofa; his little girl was patiently, yet eagerly waiting for Cassie and Sam to finish up with the twins. "Whatcha doing, munchkin?"

"Waiting for the babies and Cassie," she said.

"They'll be ready soon." He could hear Sam giving Cassandra instructions about the twins' routine and decided to wait along with his oldest daughter. He sat down next to Gracie and effortlessly pulled her into his lap, pleased when she immediately snuggled against his chest.

It was another ten minutes before she got impatient. "I'm hungry, Daddy."

If he were honest, he was starting to get hungry too. "I'll go see what's taking so long." Jack got up from the sofa and went over to his wife and Cassie. "What're you two up to?"

"I was just telling Cassie about the teething rings for the girls. You did pack them, didn't you?"

"Sam," he said softly, "Cassie already knows all this. Don't worry about it. And yes, I packed them."

Cassie waved off Sam's apologetic look and looked around the room. "I'll help Grace into her coat and then I will take the girls home with me so that you two can start enjoying your evening together."

When he heard Cassie and Gracie's moving towards the front door he wrapped an arm around his wife from behind. "If you don't want to do this you don't have to…"

Carter glanced at him over her shoulder, startled. "What do you mean?"

"Sending the girls away with Cassie. I know how much you've missed them with all the overtime you've made this week, so I can understand if you'd rather want to keep them here."

"No, we already arranged everything and Grace is excited about spending the night at Cassie's."

He shrugged as his eyes went back to the twins in front of them, each in their own seat. "Well, we could keep the twins here and let her take Gracie with her."

Sam shook her head and leaned back against his chest. "No, I'm being silly; they'll be asleep soon anyway, and won't even notice whether I'm here or not. Besides, _we_ need some time together, too."

"Okay, whatever you want," he replied, pressing a kiss in her hair. "By the way, there was a really nice smell coming from the kitchen when I came downstairs; where did that food come from?"

"Cassie," Sam said with a smile. "Since it was too late for me to get any dinner reservations in a restaurant on such short notice, she offered to pick up our favorite takeout on her way over here."

"God, I love that kid."

Naturally, Cassie overheard his remark as she came back into the living room. "I'm not a kid anymore, Jack."

Rather than verbally replying he simply grinned at her and turned his attention to the twins. Once he was sure they were comfy in their car seats he placed blankets over their bodies and tucked them in against the cold. They all said their goodbyes and Jack put the baby seats in the SUV, while Gracie buckled herself into her booster seat and Cassie got behind the wheel. Sam stayed on the porch, watching them and once the girls were all settled in Jack joined her and together they waved as Cassandra drove off and the car eventually disappeared from sight.

Smiling, he pulled Sam back into the house with him and gave her a proper welcome home kiss. After they broke apart he brushed her hair out of her face and just looked at her for a moment. "So, tell me, what are your plans for tonight?"

"To have my wicked way with my husband," Sam teased, grinning.

"Really?" Jack's voice squeaked a bit and he quickly cleared his throat. "I mean, really?" Much better, he thought to himself. With Sam's hectic schedule they'd hardly had much time together and even though the twins were sleeping through the night now, he and Sam hadn't been intimate recently and he hadn't wanted to pressure her because he knew how exhausted she was at the end of a long day.

She nodded, still smiling and pulled him towards the living room. "Yes, but first… remember last year's Valentine's Day?" When he nodded, she continued. "Well, I couldn't take you out to dinner but I figured we could have a nice romantic dinner together here."

"Yeah, I'd like that," he said. "You might want to get changed first though. Not that I don't think you look hot in your dress blues…"

She laughed when he waggled his brows. "Okay, I'll be right back. You just… wait here."

* * *

Sam slowly descended the stairs on her pumps, which matched her little black dress. It had only taken her fifteen minutes to take a quick shower, dress and do her hair and makeup, but she knew how impatient her husband could get, so she quickly slipped into the living room and put one of Jack's favorite CDs – classical music – on a pleasant volume before she went looking for him. "Jack?"

His head peeked out from the dining room. "In here. I've set the table for us."

Smiling, she went over to him and was impressed with the result: the lights were off with half a dozen sleek candles providing the only illumination and two wineglasses, two water glasses, a bottle of wine, a carafe of water, neatly folded napkins, her mother's expensive china and their best silverware were set out on the table. "It looks great, but I believe I was supposed to give _you_ a Valentine's dinner," she said.

"Ah well," Jack smirked and sat down in his chair. "I'll just let you get the food then."

Just as she was about to get the food Cassie had brought them he grabbed her hand to stop her, making Sam turn to him. "Jack?"

His brown eyes shone appreciatively as he gave her a slow onceover. "Just wanted to tell you how beautiful you look."

She blushed and took the compliment with a small smile, once more reminded of how he was the romantic one in their relationship and while he didn't talk about his feelings often, he always made her feel loved and special. "Thanks, you look quite handsome yourself." Leaning down, she ran her hand through his silver hair and gave him a quick kiss.

Jack muttered something incomprehensible under his breath – no doubt denying he was 'handsome' – as she walked away and retrieved the food she had put in the oven to keep warm. It smelled delicious and her stomach immediately started grumbling as the scent enveloped her. Grabbing two plates she started dividing the food, at first trying to be artistic the way the restaurant would often serve it but upon failing miserably she just scooped it from the boxes and heaped it on the plates. Sam threw the boxes away when they were empty, unable to leave the kitchen cluttered and dirty and then she picked up the plates and carried them into the dining room, setting one in front of Jack and one for herself.

"Sam," he said, getting up and holding out her chair for her.

"You're certainly on your best behavior tonight," she commented as she sat down and he scooted the chair in slowly.

Jack simply grinned at her as he retook his seat. "You planned a whole evening for us together, so it's the least I can do."

"Wine?"

They clinked their glasses together after she'd poured them both some wine and started on their dinner, talking about inconsequential things as well as some of the things going on at work and how the girls were. As the evening progressed and their plates were cleared, they were still talking but in a lower tone and Jack was shamelessly flirting with her. It reminded her of the early days – both of their working relationship before their feelings got too strong and their personal relationship after they got together nearly eight years ago – and made her realize how much she had missed it. Lately she had been too busy with work to give him enough attention and even then it often had to be shared with the kids if they weren't asleep.

Smiling, Sam tightened her fingers which were entwined with his, and tugged on his hand. "C'mon, let's dance."

"Dance?" Jack attempted to protest but easily let her pull him out of his chair and followed her to the living room with a soft smile on his handsome face.

"Yes, dance."

He took her in his arms and together they gently swayed with the music. "Hmm," Jack murmured as he nuzzled her hair, "I can't remember the last time we danced together."

"Probably at our wedding," she said with a soft chuckle as she laid her head on his shoulder and simply enjoyed his nearness.

Jack huffed, blowing her hair aside. "Well, then we have eight years to catch up on."

"Seven."

"Seven and a half," he said, sliding his hand to her lower back and pulling her closer.

They continued to dance until her feet started to hurt and only then they broke away because Jack insisted he wasn't going to make her suffer. She let him guide her to the sofa and was surprised when he sat down with her and pulled her feet into his lap. Slowly he began to undo the straps of her shoes and took them off, gently massaging her feet and ankles. His strong fingers were doing wonders on her sore feet, making her stretch her toes in enjoyment. Sam sighed contentedly and caught his dark gaze. "I thought I was supposed to spoil you today."

Jack's eyebrows rose up in surprise. "Oh? Guess I didn't get that memo."

"Well, last year you organized everything and this week you even brought me coffee in bed and bought me flowers and chocolate…"

"I never got around to actually _giving_ you the flowers and chocolate, though," he said, teasingly. "You just took them the next day."

Sam smiled and gently poked his thigh with her foot. "Hey, you said they were for me and fell asleep on the sofa while waiting for me to get home. Besides, the chocolates are still upstairs." Upon seeing his quizzical expression, she elaborated. "Grace had been snooping around the kitchen and normally I wouldn't take such drastic measures but she does have your sweet tooth and after that Thanksgiving fiasco, well…"

He chuckled, clearly remembering how they'd found their daughter and the war zone called their kitchen on the holiday. "If she really wants to find them she will; she has your brains, after all."

"I don't think she'll go looking for them, just wanted to remove the temptation. I doubt you'd be happy with her on a sugar high and covered in chocolate when you're here and have the babies to look after too."

"True," Jack admitted, squeezing her foot. "So, tell me, Carter, where are my chocolates and flowers?"

She had to laugh at his fake pouting and rolled her eyes. "Can I re-gift those chocolates?"

"What?!" He yelled mockingly, placing a hand over his heart. "Re-gifting something _I_ gave you?"

Shrugging, she pulled her feet from his lap and crawled over to him. "We'll share the chocolates and you don't even like flowers."

"So?"

Sam straddled his thighs and looked him in the eye. "Well, I guess I could make you bacon roses tomorrow?"

Jack chuckled as his hands rested on her waist and then he gave her the sad puppy eyes-look their daughter also used. "Hmm, bacon. For breakfast?"

"Sure, you can have your bacon roses for breakfast." She rolled her eyes in mock exasperation before leaning forward to brush his lips with hers. "Oh, I almost forgot. You gave me something else last year, too."

His gaze immediately went to the diamond studs in her earlobes and he reached up to touch one, admiring how it complimented her beauty. "Please tell me you didn't buy me earrings."

Grabbing his wrist she pressed a kiss to his hand before climbing off his lap. "Not exactly." She went back into the kitchen and when she found what she was looking for she returned to his side on the sofa. "Here."

Jack eyed the square, flat and palm-sized box with something akin to distaste. "Jewelry? Sam, you know I don't wear jewelry…"

Of course she knew he wasn't the kind of man to wear jewelry, all he ever wore were his dog tags and his wedding ring – either on the ball of chain or his finger – so Sam had tried to be creative. "Just open it."

He gave her another askant look before popping open the box and chuckling at its contents. "Oh, now this is the kind of necklace I like," he said, pulling it out of the box and stretching it over his head to let it fall around his neck. With a small tug he pulled it up to his mouth and nibbled on it. "Want a bite?"

She waited until the material was against his tanned skin again to slowly kiss a path down his neck and bit off a piece of the necklace. The combination of candy and the taste of his skin was even better than she had imagined. Smiling, she looked up at him. "Yum."

"Oh, I see," Jack said teasingly, "this is more of a gift for you than me."

"We'll share it," she promised as she got up and pulled him with her.

"And the chocolate?" He asked as she dragged him towards the stairs.

Sam nodded and led the way towards their bedroom. "Sure."

Jack took another bite as they entered the bedroom and she started unzipping her dress, revealing a glimpse of her panties. "Hey Carter, did you know they make thongs out of these candy necklaces too?"

The End...


End file.
